Digisheds launched to tackle digital skills gap in Swindon and Wiltshire

An innovative employer-led pilot programme to tackle the digital skills gap launches in Swindon’s Carriage Works this month

The Digisheds Smart Skills programme has been developed by TIN Smart Social in partnership with the Institute of Coding, Swindon and Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership’s skills service Higher Futures and Create Studios and will run between September and December.

The pilot will see employer led studio hubs “pop up” during the summer, offering tasters of tailored experiential learning pathways which align with industry job roles and digital apprenticeship standards. The hubs will feature industry-leading organisations from the education and digital sectors.

Digisheds seeks to engage all types of learners who are looking to start, develop or boost their digital careers. The pilot will be delivered in the format of masterclasses and will provide tasters of the provision to test the concept and appetite locally.

Announcing the launch of Digisheds, Swindon & Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership’s Director Paddy Bradley said:

“Businesses in Swindon and Wiltshire need appropriately skilled and competitive workforces to enable them to innovate and grow. We are delighted to be supporting the launch of Digisheds, an innovative solution to addressing the digital skills gap in our area. These employer-led studio hubs provide the opportunity for SMEs with limited resources to develop their staff, scale-up and contribute to the increasing productivity of our thriving economy.”

The studios include:

• Professional Services - New Collar Studio powered by IBM

• Creative Technology - STEAM studios powered by Create Studios

• IT Support Services - SIAM studios powered by Scopism

• Cyber Security - SecureTech studios powered by Corsham Institute

• Coding - Developer studios powered by School of Code

• AI - Cognitive studios powered by IBM Watson

• Health and Social Care - HealthTech studios powered by Mevarius

The first drop in takes place on August 7 at The Workshed, London Street, Swindon and places can be booked here.